Salon Seudun Sanomalehti Osakeyhtiö, the local Salo newspaper publisher, decided in November 1937 to found the limited company Osakeyhtiö Salon Kiva in order to build a cinema. Bryggman was commissioned to design the building. Originally the project also included a two-storey residential and commercial building at the street corner, behind which would have been the cinema.

The lobby of the Kiva Cinema is L-shaped and has a brick floor. Also the vestibule is notable for the large multi-paned window surrounding the main entrance. A functionalist-style straight flight of stairs with a rounded railing leads from the lobby to a foyer gallery, and from there one enters the balcony level of the cinema auditorium.

Originally the large auditorium had 302 seats in the stalls and 136 seats on the balcony. On both sides of the stalls there are colonnaded aisles. The corners of the auditorium hall are rounded. For acoustic reasons, Bryggman fixed circular pieces of linoleum to the curved rear of the balcony. The auditorium is painted in light shades. The exterior of the building is modest, and the wedge-shaped auditorium is clearly visible in the exterior form.

During the times the building has been used as a dance hall, industrial facility, sports hall and pub. In 2008 the building was restored with the Salo City Architect Lauri Hollmén responsible for the design.

Text: Mikko Laaksonen